Texas governor says more than 160 people still missing after deadly floods

The governor of the US state of Texas has said at least 161 people are still missing days after flash floods killed more than 100 people across central areas.

Greg Abbott spoke at a news conference after taking a helicopter tour of the affected area.

He said many of those who are not accounted for were staying in state’s Hill Country, but did not register at a camp or hotel.

Mr Abbott said US President Donald Trump has pledged to provide whatever relief Texas needs to recover from the flooding, and he read what he said was a text from US health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr which pledged to declare a public health emergency.

The state governor said of Mr Trump: “He could not stop talking about how sad he was for all the little girls who have lost their lives.”

Mr Trump plans to visit the state on Friday.

Meanwhile, public officials in charge of finding victims of the devastating flooding pushed away intensifying questions about who was monitoring the weather and warning that floodwaters were barrelling toward camps and homes.

Leaders in Kerr County, where searchers have found 87 bodies, said their first priority is recovering victims, not reviewing what happened in the hours before the flash floods inundated the state’s Hill Country.

“Right now, this team up here is focused on bringing people home,” Lt Col Ben Baker of the Texas Game Wardens said during a sometimes tense news conference where officials were questioned about the timing of their response.

Hopes of finding survivors are dwindling.

Four days have passed since anyone was found alive in the aftermath of the floods in Kerr County, officials said.

Mr Abbott plans to make another visit on Tuesday to Camp Mystic, the century-old all-girls Christian summer camp where at least 27 campers and counsellors died during the floods. Officials said five campers and one counsellor have still not been found.